kids fashion
Sh*t My Kid Lost at Summer Camp
What did you do on your summer vacation? Before we’re all too entrenched in the new school year, allow me to regale you with a harrowing tale. A tale of childhood. A tale of fun. A tale of absentmindedness and excuses and going commando. And a tale of a very, very frustrated dad.
Last summer my son attended a daytime summer camp and had an amazing time. I’ve never been much of a summer (or any type of) camper. I was/am too uptight to deal with nature or filth or a lack of personal space for long periods of time. But my kid is almost exactly the opposite. Which meant he squeezed the fun out of every moment of camp, but tended to not sweat many any of the details. Which also meant day-after-day-after-day of his shit being left behind at camp.
It boggled my mind, pushed all my Angry Dad buttons, and eventually became comically surreal. Nearly every parent I told said their kid was exactly the same, so I swore that the next summer I would document it somehow. There was some cathartic, empathetic humor to be mined.
Yet as this past school year wound down and quickly burst into summer, I found myself rushing around preparing for camp and completely forgot about my idea. It wasn’t until the first afternoon of pick-up that I remembered; when I opened my son’s backpack to put away his wet clothes and found none. On. Day. One.
Frightfully Easy DIY Halloween T-Shirts
Want to get your craft on this Halloween, but worried you’ll slice off an appendage trying to carve a Pinterest-perfect jack-o’-lantern? Then try these frighteningly fun, eerily easy DIY Halloween t-shirts!
8 Ways to Prepare Your Child for Kindergarten
It’s T-Minus three weeks until my son starts kindergarten, but I’m not stressed at all. I know there are a lot of other parents out there just like me, who will be sending their baby out into the big, bad world of crafts-making and rule-following and bells ringing…and them being away from you all day, and you not knowing what the hell is going on and why can’t I give him a cell phone so he can text me if he needs me but his spelling is still pretty terrible…oh no he’s already behind and it’s my fault plus he’d only use a phone to play Minecraft and won’t learn anything and flunk out of school on his first day thus ruining his chance of any happiness in life!!!
Nope, not stressed one bit.
Preparing your kid (and by “your kid,” I mean you) for their first day of REAL SCHOOL is easier than you think. Just follow these few simple suggestions and everything will be absolutely, positively, one hundred percent perfect.
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1. GET THE LAY OF THE LAND
Obtain schematics for the school, including drop off/pick up spots, location of the nurse’s office, routes to bathrooms, and all fire exits. Make a recording describing these layouts in detail, then play them while your child sleeps so they’re subliminally committed to his or her memory. Conducting middle-of-the-night fire/disaster/poop drills are also beneficial. Air horns recommended.
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2. KEEP YOUR FRIENDS CLOSE…
Do background checks on all the kids in your child’s classroom, as well as their parents. Find out which have a record of pulling hair, spitting or biting (applies to kids or parents), and make flash cards so your child can familiarize him or herself with this “Bad Seed” list.
Additionally, hack the school’s computer and maneuver your child so he’s seated next to that super genius musical prodigy with the millionaire parents.
New Clothing Line Tackles Gender Stereotypes One Adorable T-Shirt at a Time
Sugar and spice and everything nice? Not always. Sometimes little girls are made of sports and science and everything nerdy. Sometimes they’re not enchanted by princesses and sparkles and fairy wings. Sometimes they don’t think pink.
More (girl) power to them! But when it comes to buying clothes for such independently-minded young ladies, what are progressive, supportive parents to do?
One way to encourage and empower your kids is to check out Svaha, an awesome and awe-inspiring new clothing company. A designer friend turned me on to them, and I was instantly charmed by their cute-as-pie/out-of-the-box designs for little girls. Watch this video to learn more…
Proud Papa Gallery of Greatness 2014
Father’s Day has come and gone, and yet those of us who are dads are still dads, and still have dad stuff to do. One of the most important is instilling self-confidence and a sense of achievement in our children. Stereotypes dictate fathers only appreciate the physical accomplishments of their children — especially for their sons. But the best dads appreciate the artistic as well as the athletic — and man have I found a great bunch of art-loving dads for this year’s (POST) FATHER’S DAY PROUD PAPA GALLERY OF GREATNESS!
Welcome to our virtual fridge, take your time, and please visit the gift shop on your way out.
Please note that many of the images can be enlarged if clicked on. So click and enjoy!
Artwork credits key:
Title of work
medium
Artist name, age
Father of artist (links to their website/blog)
Artist’s (or artist’s dad’s) description
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THE CLASSICS
Monet
tissue paper, construction paper
markers on paper
Chris, 5
Carter Gaddis
Based on the Water Lilies series.
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SuperLunchNotes: Week 2
These notes from week 2 are so simple they look like they were done years ago (by a 6 year-old) instead of months ago, yet they look more spontaneous than some of what I’m doing now. I need to do notes like these more often…
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WEEK 2: Aug 19 – Aug 23, 2013
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This one was a favorite as soon as I finished it. The Penguin’s goofy proportions, tiny umbrella and the little rain drops crack me up. And I got to use my purple Sharpie!
The Penguin: 8.19.13
Wry Baby Super Sale & Super-er Giveaway
Early on during my dad-dom, one of my favorite places to find cute/cool/clever stuff for the kiddo was Wry Baby. I even got to interview their head creative honcho and fellow designer daddy, David Sapp. The only downside is that JJ has outgrown all of their super fly get-ups — but that doesn’t mean I can’t share the wonderfulness of Wry Baby with the rest of the world!
So just in time for holiday shopping, Designer Daddy is hooking you up with info on a SUPER SALE and an even SUPER-ER GIVEAWAY! Deets on both below…
THE SUPER SNAPSUIT™ SALE!.
ALL of Wry Baby’s snappy Snapsuits* are half off, so hurry and snap up a sackful!
Great for:
• baby showers
• stocking stuffers
• dressing babies
One Day Only 50% OFF All Snapsuits | December 6, 2013 | wrybaby.com
Begins December 6 at 12:01 am, ends December 6 at 11:59pm. Offer good for in-stock Snapsuits and Super Snapsuits only. Sorry, no rain checks or backorders.
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THE SUPER-ER SWAG GIVEAWAY!
Bypass the over-crowded, non-cool baby superstores this year… Designer Daddy is giving away a pile of FREE AWESOME STUFF! This Wry Baby Swag-A-Palooza prize package includes the following primo items:
A: Born to Be Prom King Snapsuit
B: Born to Be Prom Queen Snapsuit
C: Attack of the 50ft. Baby Stacking Blocks (baby not included)
D: Mysterio Predicts Your Child’s Future T-shirt
E: Bathe Like A Pirate Washcloth Set
Total prize package value in excess of 100 smackeroos!
Do the little Rafflecopter thingie below for your chance(s) to win ALL THE STUFF and make your kiddo the hippest/happiest on the block — nay, the world! Contest runs December 5-9, 2013.
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*In case you’re wondering, Snapsuits™ are indeed similar to Onesies.® The difference? Onesies® are a registered trademark of Gerber®. So good for Wry Baby — because nobody wants their baby getting sued.
DIY Clown Costume (OMG I Love Preschool!)
It was JJ’s second week of preschool, and while reviewing the calendar for the next week I noticed something that made my heart skip a beat. “TUESDAY: DRESS UP AS A CLOWN DAY.”
I had known it was going to be Circus Week all week (OMG, how fun is preschool?!?), with visits from clowns, balloon animals, and a tumble on the Tumble Bus, but somehow I’d missed this little detail. Thus, on the eve of Dress Up As A Clown Day, it became Daddy’s Making a Homemade Clown Suit the Night Before…Day, er… Night… something.
As soon as JJ was in bed, I morphed into full-on Designer Daddy mode. I giddily sent out a tweet, void of my frequent sarcasm: “Making a clown suit for Circus Day at preschool tomorrow. Now THIS is what I signed up for!”
I dragged all my bags and boxes of unused crafts out of the basement (organized craft supplies are for wimps and people with their own talk shows), grabbed a Diet Coke, shut my office door and set to work.
I know you’re probably here for the cute pics of JJ as a clown (we’ll get to them), but I thought I’d first share my “process,” in the off-chance any of you ever need to whip up an emergency clown suit.
It’s kind of a step-by-step, except without the easy-to-follow part. I was making it up as I went along…
DESIGNER DADDY’S DIY CLOWN COSTUME:
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STEP 1: Dump all your crafts onto your desk.
Okay, this isn’t ALL my craft stuff, but is a bunch of what I thought might come in handy.
Materials used:
- Glue gun (Essential adhesive extraordinaire. Works for pretty much anything but Styrofoam)
- Elmer’s glue (the old standby)
- Big-ass buttons
- Pom-poms
- Pipe cleaners
- Foam paper (my new favorite craft thing)
- Clown nose (duh)
- Clothes that already look kinda like clown clothes (Stripes, polka dots, plaids — the more garishly colorful, the better. C’mon, you know what clowns look like.)
Father’s Day Proud Papa Gallery of Greatness
Some of the best things about being a child are the boundless energy, unbridled imagination and a future filled with endless possibilities. The best thing about a child’s art is that it contains elements of all these things… and that every work is a masterpiece.
In honor of Father’s Day, I asked my dad friends to submit their kids’ artwork. Whether it was something recent, something old, or commissioned specifically for this collection, the only requirement was that the papas be proud of it. What I received was an avalanche of awesomeness. Drawings. paintings and sculpture bursting with energy, imagination and endless possibilities. And lots and lots of color. If you know me and my design work, you won’t be surprised if I “borrow” a color palette or two for future projects.
Curating this collection was no small feat, and after considering several options, I chose to group them by subject matter. This creates a nice mix of age, gender and medium in each batch. I realize there are a lot of pieces here, and that most of you probably get bored at art galleries (I know I do)… but please look through the entire gallery. This is spectacular work with some very hilarious, touching — and even rage-filled — back stories.
So welcome to the inaugural* FATHER’S DAY PROUD PAPA GALLERY OF GREATNESS (brought to you by Starbucks). Enjoy the exhibit, and please touch the artwork — it’s even more awesome zoomed in!
Artwork credits key:
Title of work
medium
Artist name, age
Father of artist (links to their website/blog)
Artist’s (or artist’s dad’s) description
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HANDS + FEET
Hola Hand
pencil, crayon on paper
JJ, 3.5
Brent Almond
While he clearly got some help writing “Hola,” the hand trace and vibrant, Latino colors are all him. Definitely going to nick this palette for my next logo project…
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Like Designer Daddy, Like Son
Every parent cherishes the milestones in their child’s development. First step, first word, first tooth, first poop on the potty. These are all documented and hold a special place in my memory. Yet JJ did something recently that had my heart leaping with pride and joy…
“Untitled” by JJ, May 2013, age 3-1/2
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“Wow, your kid’s a regular Rembrandt,” you’re probably thinking, sarcastically. Firstly, he’s three and-a-half, so shut it, Smartass McJudgeypants. READ FULL ARTICLE >>
